eysenck's theory EVALUATION Flashcards

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1
Q

mismeasurement of personality

A
  • Critics argue we cannot reduce personality type to a ‘score’
  • there is no such thing as personality as a stable entity, and that we adopt different personalities in different contexts
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2
Q

culture bias

A
  • Bartol et al studied Hispanic and African-American offenders in a New York prison
  • They were divided into groups, and they were less extravert than a non-criminal control group
  • Bartol suggested this was because the sample was a different cultural group from that investigated by Eysenck
  • The criminal personality may not be able to be generalised
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3
Q

the theory fits other biological approaches

A
  • It recognises that personality may have a genetic basis
  • There is some overlap with research into Antisocial personality disorder (APD) and the suggestion that offenders are cold,
    uncaring and incapable of empathy
  • HOWEVER
  • This means Eysenck’s theory could be criticised as being biologically reductionist and determinist
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4
Q

supporting evidence

A
  • Eysenck and Eysenck (1977) compared EPI scores of 2017 male prisoners with a control group of non-prisoner males
  • prisoners scored higher on P, E and N than the controls
  • this agrees with the prediction that offenders rate higher than average across the three dimensions identified by the theory
  • HOWEVER
  • Harrington et al’s review of studies showed that offenders scored high on P but not on E or N
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5
Q

Eysenck suggested that there is only one criminal type

A
  • Moffitt (1933) proposed several different types of adult male offender based on the timing and first offence, and how long offending persists
  • Digman’s Five Factor Model of personality suggests that alongside E and N, there are additional dimensions of openness,
    agreeableness and conscientiousness
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